(Sent to political representatives, media,
community organizations, concerned individuals.)

Our grassroots movement wants to extend its gratitude to the non-profit
organization YouthPlaces and to Lori Schaller, its executive director.
YouthPlaces is now conducting a cleanup of South Oakland streets Monday
through Friday, four hours a day and employing 12 at risk youths to do
this cleanup. The cleanup began at the beginning of July and will be
concluded at the end of July with the possibility of it extending another
week or two.

The funding for this cleanup was acquired by Ms. Schaller for our community.
This organization is first-class in every way - from its executive leadership
to its supervisors to its youth workers. They certainly deserve
the support of all of us.

It is now time for the University of Pittsburgh and the University of
Pittsburgh Medical Center to make a long-term commitment
to The SOUL Program and to our community. Is the leadership of Pitt and UPMC willing
to embarrass themselves and our city to world leaders and the world media
by not granting any support for such a program?

As you know, while Pitt administrators have said to our community “we
have no money” for such a program, scam artists have stolen $65
million dollars from Pitt. If only $1 million of that money had been
invested in our community, then we could have hired 10 at risk youth
workers for 10 years to create a clean and healthy environment for Oakland.

Our movement also wants to thank those politicians who expressed support
for our cause by saying that Pitt and UPMC should do more for our community.
We understand their frustration when they tell us that they cannot force
Pitt and UPMC to do more.

When universities and corporations do not fulfill their civic responsibilities
then perhaps new laws have to be created on a city, state or federal
level. Perhaps an IMPACT AID Law is needed whereby institutions such
as the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh Medical
Center would be legally required to provide greater support to the communities
which they affect. Should resistance from Pitt and UPMC continue, then
it is time to initiate such a law for our community and others like us.

Pitt has recently announced that it is raising tuition this coming year
by $512 for in-state undergraduates and by $562 for out-of-state students
in Oakland. Tuition will increase to $13,344 and $23,042 a year respectively.
There are nearly 30,000 students at Pitt. If only
$4 (Four Dollars) of
that tuition was given to our community, then we could hire 10 at risk
youth workers to pick up litter on our sidewalks and streets for an entire
year, with an additional $20,000 for beautification projects.

Pitt and UPMC don’t need us to tell them where funding can be
found to give more support to our community. This issue has always been
about more than just money. It has been about caring more deeply for
a community and having individuals take greater responsibility for their
actions and the consequences of their actions.